Ordinary Day
by Kyoko Sakuma
Summary: Yo! OMG! It's a songfic! Never done one of these, so tips are cool. Matt/Mello. I was listening to Ordinary Day by Vanessa Carlton and thought it was a kinda cool way of looking at Matt and Mello's relationship. Enjoy! Ny-chan says yo! Rated OT for later.
1. Tree

Yo! Me again, Kyoko Sakuma! This time it's a song-fic. Song: Ordinary Day by Vanessa Carlton. Manga: Death Note. Pairing: Matt/Mello, of course! :-) Okay, so, I'm not going to do that obnoxious type the lines in the middle of the 'fic in italics thing because I feel like it distracts people from the story. This is more inspired by that song than following the song. I'll type the lyrics for each chapter at the end of it. I intend for this to be multi-chapter, but we'll see how that works out. 'Ta! Ny-chan says hi!

Oh, and, yeah, obviously I don't own Death Note or Vanessa Carlton.

* * *

Matt slumped against a tree in the yard and pulled out his gameboy. As he flipped the switch to the 'on' position and watched the game's title sequence, his mind began to wander. It wasn't as if he had anything better to do. He didn't have many good friends at Wammy's House. Sure, he'd made one or two buddies he would play with now and then in his few years there, but he didn't have a BEST friend, like Mario had Luigi or Sonic had Tails. He made more enemies than friends, actually. His weird way of dressing- black and white striped shirt, cargo shorts, brown vest, combat boots, and goggles- and his obsession with everything electronic made him a natural target for bullies. In fact…

"Hey, Fish-boy, whatcha got there?" An older boy loomed over Matt and snatched his gameboy away before he could respond.

"Ah- Pokemon Emerald. Very nice."

"Give it back!" Matt yelled, jumping up and down as the older boy held it just out of his reach.

"Sorry, but I don't feel like it." He smirked. "You know, I heard somewhere that the inside of a gameboy is very colorful. Want to find out if it's true, Fish-boy?"

"Give it _back_!" Matt jumped higher and higher, but to no avail. The older boy finally pushed him down and raised the hand with the gameboy, ready to dash it on the ground.

A voice broke through Matt's shouts. "I believe he said 'give it back' just now."

The boy turned to see his new opponent. Matt gazed past his legs, tears stinging his eyes, and beheld the most welcome sight he had seen in a long time. A boy of about four-and-a-half feet with blonde hair and bright blue eyes gazed up at the bully with surprising intensity.

"What did you say?" Matt wasn't sure if the bully was more shocked or angry about the sudden appearance of this new boy.

"I said that he said to give it back."

"Oh, really? He said to give it back? That's too bad, because I have no intention of doing that."

"I think you should."

"And who's going to make me? You? Hah. I've seen more threatening girls. You sure you're not a girl yourself, Blondie?"

That sentence seemed to set off a trigger in the younger male. A wave of pure anger passed over his face and he swiftly kicked the older boy in the shin with all his might. The boy howled in pain and grabbed at his leg.

Meanwhile, the new boy had passed him by and held out his hand to Matt. Matt hesitantly took it and the boy pulled him to his feet.

"I'm Mello," he said simply. "Nice to meet you."

"I'm… M-Matt," Matt stammered. This Mello was so beautiful…

"Hey! You little brat! Don't think you can get away with that!" Matt watched helplessly as Mello turned to face the bully again just in time to get his beautiful face smashed in by a fist.

Thirty minutes later, Matt watched from behind a corner as Mello sat in a chair outside the nurse and held a rag to his bleeding nose. He wanted to go over there so badly but he was scared stiff and, even if he did go over there, he had no idea what he would say when he got there, and this Mello seemed rather intimidating and would probably be sarcastic and cynical and…

"Are you just going to stand there?"

Matt jumped at the voice. He looked up from the spot on the floor his eyes had been trained on and saw two blue eyes looking directly back at him.

"What?" Matt never was very good with vocabulary.

"Never mind. Hey, come here," Mello said as he shifted in his seat. Matt, not knowing what else to do, obeyed.

"Listen, I'm sorry you got your face messed up because of me," Matt began, his voice shaky.

Mello stared at him. "It's not your fault. Don't be sorry."

"But, if you hadn't intervened, you wouldn't have gotten hurt." Matt was confused.

"Yes, but I wanted to intervene, so it's my fault, not yours." Matt started to protest, but one sharp glance from Mello was enough to hush him up. Mello sighed and turned towards the wall. He mumbled something Matt couldn't hear.

"What was that?" Matt asked. Mello raised his voice ever so slightly.

"_You're very cute_."

Matt's breath hitched. He was nine years old and no one had EVER called him cute before, not even the little old ladies he saw walking in town when he snuck out of the orphanage.

"What'd you say?"

Mello slowly turned back to face him and answered with a blank expression, "You have weird shoes."

* * *

Just a day,  
Just an ordinary day.  
Just trying to get by.  
Just a boy,  
Just an ordinary boy.  
But he was looking to the sky.  
And as he asked if I would come along  
I started to realize  
That everyday he finds  
Just what he's looking for,  
Like a shooting star he shines.

* * *

Ah, so, like? Not like? I shall only continue it if I get at least 3 reviews for this chapter because… well… (blush) Kyoko Sakuma just got a boyfriend. :-) Ny-chan likes my boyfriend, too. Anywho, off to bed for me! G'night, reader-sama!


	2. Three Years

'Allo! Guess who's back, back again, Kyoko's back, tell a friend, now everyone was going to Anime Boston, Anime Boston, Anime Boston, now everyone was going to Anime Boston, all right, stop- Mello time. Sorry 'bout that. :-) I was feeling goofy. Soooo. Here's chapter 2, as promised. I had a hard time figuring out where to end the last one. A big part of me wanted to end with the line 'you're very cute', but I thought just leaving it like that would be all lame and people would be like 'NYAAAAHR WHAT HAPPENED' and burn down my house. Plus, I wanted to add that last thing in there (even though I wanted Mello to say something that rhymed but all I could think of was 'whore berry soup'. Sadly, I'm not even kidding.) because I thought it was cute and it's my story. Teehee. Obviously I don't own Death Note or Vanessa Carlton or Coke, though I'd love it if someone could give me L, Mello, and Matt for my birthday (which was May 14th). Happy reading!

* * *

"Mello! Argh!" Matt tumbled off the bed and frantically crawled toward the corner in which he'd flung his controller. Mello laughed.

"That's what you get for showing off." He'd started to lose their game and, consequently, shoved Matt off the bed in a desperate attempt to screw him up.

Mello swiftly destroyed Matt's character as the redhead fiddled with the batteries that had become dislodged from his wireless controller. He smiled triumphantly and slouched against the pillows on Matt's bed.

"I win."

"Yeah, but only because you cheated," Matt retorted.

"I don't have to cheat, you know."

"Yes, you do."

"Do not. I could easily beat you even if you hadn't had that unfortunate loss of balance."

"Loss of balance, you say?" Matt muttered to himself.

"What?"

"Nothing. Want to play fairly?"

"I _always_ play fairly."

"Yeah, right."

Matt and Mello restarted their game and Matt crushed Mello, fair and square. Mello immediately called for a rematch.

"No way, Mello. If you don't recall, that WAS a rematch." Matt crossed his arms on his chest. With the way he was sitting, he bore a slight resemblance to Roger.

"One day, Matt."

"One day you'll what, give up?" Matt gave his best cheeky grin.

"Very funny." Mello poked Matt in the ribs, causing the younger boy to jump up and, once again, tumble to the floor. However, on the way down, Matt managed to grab Mello's ankle and pull him down with him. They collapsed in a pile on the carpet. Matt sat up and smiled.

"You know, you really are beautiful."

"Sh-shut up!" They had gotten into fights before about the feminine term 'beautiful'.

"But it's true! You're absolutely gorgeous!" Matt insisted.

"Stop saying that," Mello said, blushing slightly as he looked anywhere but into Matt's eyes. "If anything, it's handsome."

"But handsome sounds so… old." Matt's face lit up. "I've got it. You're cute."

"Cute?" Mello gagged. The term was used on puppies, small children, fish, anything but him. However, hadn't he once called this redhead cute? He had, but did that mean Matt felt the same way he did…? To use the same term… does one have to have the same feelings behind it? Did Matt like Mello as much as Mello liked Matt?

"Yeah. Well, what do you want, if not cute?!" Matt was getting exasperated.

_For you to kiss me_. "Nothing. Cute is fine." Mello shook all thoughts of Matt and kissing out of his head. They were both guys. That wasn't right, was it?

Matt sighed. "All right. Whatever you say." He walked out of the room and Mello was left alone.

Matt shut the door and continued down the hall. Tears began to run down his cheeks.

"Dammit…" He was frustrated beyond belief. There was nothing more in this world he wanted than to just kiss Mello but he knew Mello didn't feel the same and would likely kill him later for it. When they fell, all he could think about was Mello's body against his. He was 12 years old and he'd known Mello three years and never stopped thinking about him.

"Mello, you may be 2nd in this orphanage but sometimes you're really thick," Matt said to himself.

Back in Matt's bedroom, Mello had stood up and sat in the computer chair at his desk. He spun around a few times, then stopped due to a severe dizzy feeling. He hadn't really been thinking about kissing Matt, had he? There was just something wrong with it. He couldn't overcome Matt's gender. If he were going to get in a relationship, it would be with a girl, not Matt. But… Matt was cute, and Mello did like him.

What was going on with his head?

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Later that night, Mello awoke to Matt poking him in the ribs.

"WHAT," he yell-whispered, angry at having been woken up at 11:05.

"A bunch of the other guys and some girls at playing spin-the-bottle. Want to come?" Mello would much rather sleep than play a stupid game like that, but Matt's smile won him over.

Mello sat next to Matt in the circle of 11- to 13-year-olds as a pretty little girl with green hair ribbons and freckles spun the bottle. It landed on a boy a few spots from her. She skipped over and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before blushing and returning to her seat on the floor. The boy spun the bottle and the game continued. It went through several more blushes and kisses between boys and girls, girls and girls, and boys and boys. Finally, a boy with black hair and green eyes spun and landed on Matt. He crossed the circle to kiss Matt on the forehead. Matt sighed and took his turn. Mello held his breath as the Coke bottle spun around and around. It began to slow down and…

Mello couldn't believe it.

It landed on him.

Matt turned and faced Mello. He stood up and took Mello's hand to pull him up as well. Mello found trouble breathing as he stared in Matt's eyes through his goggles. Matt flashed him a usual grin and Mello barely had time to think before their lips connected. It was a fast kiss, like all the others had been, but it left Mello with almost no balance and very little coherent thought. He shook off his stupor and ran from the room before Matt had a chance to speak.

Matt stared as Mello sprinted out of the bedroom and down the hall. By the time he thought to chase his friend, Mello was all the way around the corner. Luckily, Matt was faster. He soon caught the blonde by the edge of his shirt.

"Yo, Mello! What's wrong?" he asked.

"Let go of me!" Mello insisted, desperately struggling to break free.

"No. Not until you tell me why you ran away." Mello was thrashing so violently that Matt had to put both of his arms around Mello's waist from behind to keep him from running. Suddenly, he stopped altogether.

Mello whispered something that Matt couldn't understand.

"What'd you say?"

Mello turned in Matt's arms to face him. Matt was reminded of the day he met Mello three years before.

"I ran because I like you and I know it's just a game."

Matt felt his heart jump. "You… like me?" Mello turned away, embarrassed. Matt turned Mello back to face him and, before the older boy could protest, he threw his arms around his shoulders and kissed him full-on.

Mello squirmed for a second, then relaxed and eased into the kiss. It was nice. Matt's lips were soft and warm against his and he could feel Matt's breath on his cheeks. It tickled a bit, but it was a good kind of tickle. Matt slowly broke away and Mello looked up to see a different kind of smile. Instead of the goofy grin Matt usually sported, it was a kind, warmhearted, loving smile. The redhead leaned into Mello's ear and whispered, "If I didn't like you, don't you think I'd be back in there, kissing other girls and guys?"

Mello didn't know what to say. Matt liked him? It certainly helped Mello's decision between structure and his heart, but it was still a little strange to think. Matt liked him. The Matt he'd liked for three years liked him back. He was a strange mix of nervous and happy. It started to bubble up inside of him and he knew he couldn't go another minute being 'just friends'.

"Matt… I like you a lot." Mello stared at the floor.

"I like you, too, Mello," Matt replied, tilting his chin up. He pulled his goggles off and let them slip from his hand onto the carpet. For the first time, Mello looked directly into Matt's bright green eyes. "I have since the day we met."

"So, what now? Are we boyfriends?" Mello asked.

Matt grinned. "Sounds good to me." He kissed Mello on the cheek and walked down the hall to his own room, leaving Mello to stare after him.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

The next day, Matt and Mello became even more inseparable than before. They played tag during break in the yard and Matt, being the faster of the two, glomped Mello after a mere minute of being 'It'. They fell to the ground laughing at the base of a big tree. Matt, having fallen on top, brushed some of Mello's hair out of his eyes and smiled warmly down at him.

"Mello."

"Matt."

"Hey, isn't this the tree we met under?" Matt asked, suddenly remembering the thick roots.

"I don't know. It could be. I wasn't really paying attention to which tree it was," Mello answered.

"Yeah, it is!" Matt answered himself, instead. "You know what we should do?"

"What?" Mello said, slightly distracted by a yellow butterfly next to his head on the trunk.

"Put our initials on it somewhere where no one else will find them."

Mello's head snapped up. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah! Really small, and up high, so Roger won't see."

"Fine. Do you have a knife or something?"

Matt whipped a Swiss army knife he'd nabbed from an older boy's room earlier that week out of his pocket. The two boys climbed up the trunk of the tree quite easily and settled into a branch about 15 feet up.

"Here?" Mello inquired.

"Here," Matt answered. He carefully carved a heart about the size of his hand onto the branch and wrote 'Mello' inside it. He handed Mello the knife and he carved '+ Matt' in the remaining space. Matt returned the knife to its place in his vest pocket and settled on the branch with his arm around Mello.

"Hey, Mello," he breathed.

"What?"

Matt pressed his lips to Mello's cheek.

"Nothing."

* * *

**He said take my hand,**

**Live while you can**

**Don't you see your dreams lie right in the palm of your hand**

**And as he spoke, he spoke ordinary words**

**Although they did not feel**

**For I felt what I had not felt before**

**And you'd swear those words could heal.**

**And as I looked up into those eyes**

**His vision borrows mine.**

**And I know he's no stranger,**

**For I feel I've held him for all of time.**

* * *

Wow, that was the longest chapter I've ever written of anything, EVER. That's kinda sad, ne? I like the way it ended, myself. Big things coming up soon… I promise… I know someone reviewed and said they know the song. For anyone else who does, you know there's only two more verses! Eek! I've been thinking about this during my English class a lot, which is bad because I should be focusing on A Tale of Two Cities. Fuck Dickens, Matt/Mello is more interesting. Things are going well with Rano-kun, Ny-chan is happy and healthy, and my room is a mess. G'night, reader-sama! By the way, it's 11:11 PM Eastern Time on May 22, 2008. Please review! :-)


	3. Hero

Sorry it took so long. They see me writin', they flamin', low ratings 'cause those NOOBS are pro-Near/Mello! Gotta hate that NearxMello, come on people it's MattxMello, what's the best pair- MattxMello, Matt's the seme and uke's Mello… :-) Again, sorry for my dorkiness. Actually, I haven't gotten yelled at by NearxMello fans yet. I'm surprised. I am not a fan of the Near, therefore, I am not a fan of the NearxMello. I have 'Guy Love' from Scrubs stuck in my head… OKAY! Randomness ends NOW. So, I'm a little mad at myself because I didn't like the ending of the last chapter but I needed that for something later. If you didn't guess already, guess what albino in pajamas is showing up in this chapter! Not going to lie, it's going to get sad, but it'll pick up next chapter! (maybe-!) Actually, I'm not sure for myself how this chapter will end. I'm coming to a choice. Nyahr, I don't know which to pick. I'll figure it out. You see, I type this part before I type the chapter and the thing at the end after, so I haven't actually written anything yet. I want to do one thing at the end but if I do that then the other thing I want to do doesn't work out but if I don't do the first one then the next chapter's going to be intensely weird and hard to do. Hmm. All right, if you're not too confused now, please read on! :-) I don't own Death Note, Matt, Mello, L, Vanessa Carlton, Turk, JD (though, who wouldn't want to), or Florida.

* * *

Matt skipped down the hall with his hands in his pockets (author's note: Try it some time. It's harder than it looks. Skipping with your hands in your pockets, I mean), stopping at a room with green walls and two twin beds pushed together.

"MELLO YELLOW!" he yelled through the doorway, smiling.

"For the last time, don't call me that," the blonde snapped.

"Oh, you know I love you," Matt said in reply as he walked into the room and flopped down across their beds. Mello, who had just left the shower and, therefore, was wearing only a towel, soon joined him.

"You're so sexy, Mello…" Matt purred as he pulled Mello's warm body closer to his own.

"Get off," Mello said as he lightly punched Matt's forehead. Matt knew he didn't really mind because in the next second, they were kissing. These kisses were different from the ones they'd had when they were 12 and 13, though. Back then, they were slow, unsure, and uncoordinated. They'd now 'officially' been boyfriends for two years, and they had had quite a lot of- ahem- practice.

Mello let a low moan slip out as Matt's tongue forced its way into his mouth. The almost-14-year-old was more aggressive and Mello had learned to sit back and let him take the reins. However, today was different. Today, Matt tried something new.

While their mouths were busy, Matt slipped his hand up Mello's leg and, before the older boy could react, he unrolled the edge of the towel and let it slip away. Mello pulled away from their kiss and jumped up. Matt immediately knew he'd gone too far.

Mello closed the door quietly before turning to face the redhead. "Matt. I like you."

Matt didn't like where this was going. It wasn't the words Mello said, but the tone he said them in, almost as if they excused the rest of what he was about to say. "I know."

"I'm not… ready… to… go that far," he said slowly, trying to choose his words wisely.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not you, exactly… It's just… too fast." Mello picked up his towel and wrapped it around his waist once more. Matt couldn't help but wish that he'd neglected it for just a little longer.

"I'm sorry," he repeated numbly. Mello put his hand on Matt's head.

"I know." He kissed his forehead and walked to the closet to get dressed.

Matt stared at Mello's back as he dressed. The blonde was strong, but not too muscular. He seemed to have all the right angles in all the right places.

He felt his stomach flutter.

"Matt?" Mello said, jolting him out of his fantasy.

"Yeah?" Matt replied, trying not to drool.

"Did you hear what Roger said about that new kid coming today?"

"Sort of. He said the usual thing about welcoming him into our home and being sure to reach out and junk." Matt rolled over onto his back.

"We should try and meet him."

"Maybe. Sure."

Matt stood up and hugged Mello from behind. The older boy stood still in his arms.

"Mello," Matt whispered, "I really am sorry."

Mello turned around just enough to give Matt a quick peck on the cheek before walking out the door. Matt followed close behind.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"So, where'd you come from, anyway?" Mello inquired.

The white-haired boy slowly answered, "An orphanage in America. I've been an orphan for as long as I can remember."

Matt stared at the wall. He'd zoned out almost immediately when the two started conversing. Mello had forced him to go down to the new boy's room and meet him. He listened long enough to introduce himself, learn that the boy's name was Near, and figure out that Mello wasn't going to let him leave that easily. Mello seemed to show a genuine interest in Near, and Matt felt a faint twinge of jealousy. He rubbed his toe against the carpet.

"It was nice meeting you," Mello said. Matt's ears perked up. Were they really leaving? He waved goodbye to Near and followed Mello out of the bedroom.

"He was pretty nice," Mello commented.

"Nicer than me?" Matt asked, shooting Mello his best innocent look. Mello smiled and patted his hair.

"_He _doesn't try to touch me like you do."

Matt immediately became defensive. "I said I was sorry!"

Mello brushed his hair off the front of his goggles. "Relax. I was just kidding." He kissed the younger boy who blushed and pretended to be amazed with the wallpaper.

They walked on down the hall until they came to their first class, Literature. It was one of Matt's least favorite classes. Why read a book when you can play video games? (NOTE: Kyoko Sakuma completely disagrees.)

Mello, on the other hand, loved it. Books were the holders of all the information in the world. Someday, he wanted to know all of that information. Mello also loved knowing that he could out-smart everyone else in that class. He was a pro at interpreting poems and other symbolic works. His favorite was 1984. (NOTE AGAIN: Kyoko Sakuma HATES this book, but it seems like a very Mello book, ne? However, Kyoko Sakuma does like Animal Farm.) He was happy to discover that Near was in the same Literature class as himself and Matt. The new boy seemed smart and it would be good to have someone who actually enjoyed being there as well.

"All right, people, take your seats," the teacher, Mr. Taki said. (Note- Heh.)

The preteen geniuses all filed into their desks and prepared to, in some cases, zone out, and in others, take notes.

"Last night, you were told to read the first five chapters of Animal Farm. Can anyone tell me who the farmer represents?"

Mello raised his hand high in the air, excited at the opportunity to answer a question.

"Near?" Mr. Taki called out.

"The Tsar."

"Correct."

Mello was dumbfounded. He had NEVER been skipped like that before. He was NEVER the one who didn't know the answer. He glanced over at Matt, who was playing a game under his desk and was oblivious to the way the blonde's mind was crumbling. How could this happen?! He felt like a ton of bricks had just been dropped on his heart. He was a loser. No, he was lower than a loser. He was a FAILURE.

The next day, they had a pop quiz on Animal Farm. Mello grinned upon receiving his graded quiz later that afternoon and seeing '99' written in red at the top. His happiness was short-lived, however, as he soon noticed a crowd forming around his white-haired friend. Near had achieved 100.

As the weeks went by, it was no different. The subject didn't matter- Anatomy, Calculus, World History, Government, Psychology- Near beat him at everything. Mello began to greatly resent the younger boy and made it a point to avoid him. However, avoiding Near was not as easy as it seemed.

One afternoon, while walking down the hall, Mello turned a corner just in time to bump right into his newfound enemy. Near politely apologized, but Mello ran back to his room before he could hear anything he said. Collapsing on his bed, Mello clenched his blanket and tears began to run down his face. He didn't notice his boyfriend leaning against the wall in the corner.

Matt was scared. He'd never seen Mello like this. The blonde was always strong and never cried. Matt flipped the switch on his gameboy to the 'off' position and walked over to the edge of the bed. He wasn't sure what to do, but he figured there was only one way to start. He lightly stroked Mello's back.

"What's wrong?"

Mello's head snapped up. He relaxed when he saw that it was just Matt.

"Nothing," he replied, hastily wiping away his tears.

"Mello, you're crying," the redhead pointed out.

"No, I'm not." Mello could be very stubborn when he wanted to.

"_Yes_, you are. What happened?"

Mello sighed. He knew that there was no way Matt would let him get away without telling him the truth.

"I was number one."

"What?"

"I was NUMBER ONE, Matt. I was always the best at everything here. Then HE had to show up and ruin it."

"Who?" Matt asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Near." Mello spat his name like a curse.

"Is that really what this is about?" Matt was surprised that the blonde had broken down over something that… simple. _Well, the higher they are, the harder they fall, ne? _

"Yes!" Mello sounded hurt. His eyes brimmed up with tears once more.

"Hey, hey, don't cry. It's okay." Matt sat down on the bed and pulled Mello close. He positioned the older boy so that he was almost in his lap. Wrapping his arms around the thin body, he whispered, "Mello, it's okay."

Mello cried quietly and Matt held him the whole time. When the tears stopped, the redhead kissed his boyfriend's forehead.

Mello slowly stood up and wiped his eyes. Matt stood up as well and hugged him close.

"You'll always be number one to me."

Just then, someone knocked on the door. They jumped apart as had been necessary to keep their relationship a secret from the nosy, yet, reserved, Roger. Moments later, the door opened to reveal the very man they feared.

"Mello, I should like to see you in my office in a few minutes," said Roger. Mello nodded and, his message being delivered, Roger closed the door.

"What did you do now?" Matt asked, his sad expression now exchanged for his grin.

"'Dunno," Mello replied. "Seems like they make new rules just to gain new reasons to punish me."

"More likely, you keep finding new ways to break the already standing rules." Mello punched his arm before giving him a peck on the cheek and heading down the hall, leaving Matt staring wistfully after him.

His smile fell the moment he entered Roger's office. Near was sitting in one of the two chairs in front of the desk.

"What's the meaning of this?" Mello inquired, glaring at the white-haired boy.

"Well, there's someone I'd like the two of you to meet. L, could you come in here?"

The two boys turned to see a strange man enter the room.

"Hello," he said.

Mello sized him up. He looked about 20 years old, although, there was no real way to tell his age at all. He could have been as young as 15 or as old as 40. He had a shock of black hair that looked like it hadn't been brushed properly in years, sported dark rings under his eyes that indicated little-to-no sleep, and was wearing a simple white long-sleeved shirt and jeans. At the same time, there was something… intriguing… about him.

Roger interrupted Mello's thoughts. "L, these are our two smartest boys, Near and Mello."

"How do you do," Near said in the same flat tone he used with everyone and everything else.

"Hi," Mello said, breathless.

"Hello, again. My name is L. I used to live here, long before you two."

Mello listened with fascination as L recounted his story.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"MATT, MATT, MATT, MATT, MATT, MATT, MATT!"

The above-mentioned boy's head shot up at hearing his name called so desperately.

"OH, SHIT!" he yelled before running for his life from the hysterical blonde.

He eventually ran outside to their tree and climbed up into the branches.

"Matt, come down!" Mello called.

"Hell, no! You're going to kill me!" He clung stubbornly to the trunk.

"I have something great to tell you!"

"Unless Near's moving to a new orphanage, I think you're overreacting!"

"Hah! I wish! Seriously, this is great, though!"

"No!"

"All right." The blonde got a sort of manic grin on his face. "Then I'm coming up."

"What…? Ah, Mello, no-! AAAAH! MELLO! STOP! OKAY, STOP! STOP! SOMEONE'S GOING TO FALL! HELP ME, SOMEBODY, MELLO'S GOING TO KILL ME!" Matt scampered higher into the branches as the crazy-looking boy climbed up after him. It wasn't long before Mello caught up to him and grabbed his leg. Matt surrendered and the settled into a branch about halfway up.

"GUESS. WHAT. HAPPENED." Mello's face was pulled into an uncharacteristic grin.

"What." Matt said it more as a statement than a question.

"Roger introduced Near and me to this guy, L, and he's a famous detective who apparently used to live here, about 10 years ago, too!" (Note- Yeah, it's Near and me, not Near and I. Look it up.)

"Really, now." Matt's apparent disinterest annoyed Mello.

"Yes! He's working on the Kira case. You know, that one we've been following in Current Events? Or do you space out there, too?"

"No, no, I know. I try to keep my spacing out in the 'Literature, Government, Geometry' area."

"Anyway," the blonde continued, ignoring the redhead's sarcasm, "He's so cool! The way he walks and talks is just captivating! I think he's the smartest man who ever lived."

"Smarter than Einstein?" Matt joked.

"Yes. Smarter than Einstein."

As the boys conversed in their tree, they were unaware that, from within the house, the very man they spoke of watched them.

"So…" Roger began, "Which one do you think would be better?"

L didn't avert his gaze from the window as he said, "Near seems smarter, but, Mello seems to have more dedication. Especially with that red-haired boy out there…"

Roger looked out at the boys. "Matt? Oh, he's just number three."

L turned to face the old man. "Yes, but two heads are better than one and they seem to be quite the team."

Truth be told, Roger could list many occasions when the two boys had outsmarted him. Rather than admit this to L, he shook his head and said, "I suppose…"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

A few weeks later, Matt sat alone in his bedroom, playing a game. Mello was in trouble again and had been sentenced to two hours spent staring at the wall in Roger's office.

He defeated the last boss in his game and stood up. He stretched and placed his gameboy on the desk. Just as he reached for the doorknob, someone knocked softly from the outside. He opened the door and found himself, shockingly, staring at Near.

"Can I… help you…?" he asked.

"Can I come in?" the boy inquired, a strange look in his eyes that Matt had never seen before.

He stepped to the side and gestured toward the beds. Near, almost nervously, sat on Mello's bed. _Hah… Mello would have a fit…_

Matt flopped down on his bed and said, "What's up?"

Near took a breath before whispering something Matt couldn't hear.

"What?"

Near stared directly into his eyes. "Why does Mello hate me now?"

Matt was taken aback. There was something so fragile about the look in Near's eyes. It reminded him that, while they were all geniuses, they were still just kids, and Near was a year younger than him, as well.

"Well… I think it's because he's jealous that you're smarter than him. I mean, he was the smartest guy here before you came." The look on the younger boy's face told Matt that he had phrased that incorrectly. "Wha- what I meant to say was…" He sighed. "Mello doesn't like knowing that there's someone better than him at something. He's competitive. It's not you, Near, it's just… that's just the way Mello is, I guess. Maybe that's why we get along. He knows I'm not as smart as him, and I'm okay with that." He smiled warmly.

Near pondered this for a moment. Then he asked a new question that took Matt by surprise.

"Matt… what's it like to be in love?"

Matt felt color rush to his cheeks. "I don't know what you mean," he replied, flustered.

Near smiled softly. He stood up and walked to the door. He looked back for a moment and said simply, "I wish you both luck." With that, he was gone.

Matt thought about Near's question. 'What's it like to be in love?' What was that supposed to mean? It was a given that Near would figure out that he and Mello were boyfriends, seeing as he was so smart, but… why did he say that? Matt liked Mello a lot, sure, but he didn't know if he would say he was in _love_.

Two hours passed quickly as Matt lay down on his bed and staring at the ceiling, deep in thought.

He liked Mello more than anyone he'd ever met.

He couldn't see himself with anyone else, not even when they were grown up.

He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Mello.

He didn't care at all that Mello was a boy.

He'd rather be in the worst place with Mello than in the best place alone.

He valued Mello's life more than his own.

He'd die for Mello.

…

Maybe he did love Mello. The more he considered it, the more he realized it was true. Matt loved Mello. He loved Mello more than life itself. Glancing at the clock, he realized that Mello should be on his way back to their bedroom right about then. Excited, he jumped up. His heart raced as he tried to find the words to express his love to Mello. He wanted to tell him right away. Matt felt his stomach flutter and grinned wildly as he reveled in the thought. He was in love with Mello, and he was going to tell him as soon as possible.

Just then, the door opened and the blonde walked in.

"Mello!" Matt shouted. "You have no idea how happy I am! There's something I have to…" His words trailed off as he realized that Mello's eyes were red. The boy had been crying. A lot.

"What's wrong?"

Mello looked into Matt's eyes, and Matt swore to himself that he'd make sure that nothing would ever make Mello that sad ever again. His eyes were full of despair. It broke his heart to see Mello like that. He choked as he spoke, beginning to cry again.

"Matt… L's dead."

Matt was speechless. He never expected his boyfriend's newfound hero to just… die…

"Kira…?" he inquired.

"Yeah," Mello answered.

Matt pulled Mello into a hug. "Mello… I'm sorry…" He kissed Mello on his cheeks and forehead and everywhere else that could be kissed. "I'm so sorry…"

That night, Matt could hear Mello crying in the darkness. He silently rolled out of his own bed and into Mello's. He lay behind Mello and held him until they fell asleep.

The next morning wasn't much better. Mello went on as normal, but it was as if he were an empty shell. He tried to hide his emotion from everyone, but Matt could still see that sadness in his eyes. His hero, his idol, his L- was dead.

A week passed and Matt and Mello lay in their beds, unable to fall asleep.

"Matt, I'm leaving."

The blonde stated it so simply that the redhead wasn't sure he'd heard right at first.

"What?"

"I'm _leaving_. I'm going to go after Kira."

Fear struck Matt like an icy sword through his heart. Kira? The mysterious serial killer? But… Mello… Mello would be…

"Mello, you _can't_. What if you die?"

"What if I do?"

"Mello, it would break my heart. Please don't go."

"I'm leaving and there's nothing you can say to stop me."

Matt glared at the older boy. "Fine. Then I'm going with you."

"No."

"YES. Why not?! If you die, I want to be right there, dying with you! Mello, I don't want to lose you! Please… don't leave me!"

Mello heard Matt's voice crack and knew he was on the verge of tears. He sighed.

"Fine. Be ready at 2:00 am."

Matt glanced at the clock. Midnight. "All right."

They kissed and prepared to leave.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Matt and Mello successfully snuck onto a plane headed for America by hiding in two suitcases. They didn't know what would happen when they arrived, only that America was more involved with the Kira case than England and, therefore, they'd have a better shot finding information there.

Once the plane landed, they slipped out of the bags and ran away unnoticed while the man unloading the suitcases went to get another two.

"Okay," Matt said as he gazed at the tall buildings all around them, "What now?"

"Um…" For the first time in his life, Mello had no idea what to do. "Let's see. Where are we?"

Matt pointed to a sign that said 'WELCOME TO LOS ANGELES!' in peeling paint with a dull expression on his face.

"Right. We can't go to the government for help because I'm not sure what the laws here are but I'm pretty sure it's illegal to become an immigrant with no passport by stowing away on a plane. That leaves two options: find somewhere to stay with no money on our own, or enlist some help."

The answer obvious to the two boys, they set off in search of some lowlifes.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"What do you want?" a gruff male voice yelled.

"We want in!" Mello shouted back.

They heard laughs from within the factory.

"Are you serious?" The door opened to reveal a tall, bald man with a dark moustache and beard.

Mello matched his glare. Matt hung back a few feet from Mello, scared that this huge man could kill them any second.

"Mello… let's just go…"

"No, Matt. We came this far."

The tall man laughed. "Stubborn, huh? Well, I have no use for kids. Sorry." He started to slam the door, but Mello stuck his foot in the way.

"I _said_, 'we want in'."

The man paused to give the blonde a cold glare, which he once again matched easily. He sighed.

"All right, are you any good with a gun?"

Mello shrugged. "I could try."

The factory roared with laughter.

"Kid," the man said, "Are you telling me you've _never _shot a gun?"

"Yes," Mello replied, annoyed at the laughs.

"And yet, you expect to be let in."

"Yes, I do. My friend here can hack any computer you want, and I can fight better than half these guys here _without _a gun. Think about those skills. You can't tell me they wouldn't help."

The man seemed to think about this. "You've got spunk, kid. What's your name?"

"Mello, and this is Matt." Matt gave a feeble wave.

"Okay, Mello and Matt. Welcome to the mafia."

He stepped to the side and the two boys passed inside.

"My name is Rod. Remember- YOU'RE HERE ON A TRIAL BASIS. Any slip-ups, and you won't live to get another chance. Got that?"

"Yes," Mello answered for them.

"Good. You can sleep in there." Rod pointed to a room about 20 feet away. "It _was _Lenny's, but, well… he didn't do too well in that last fight. Bullet through the head." Rod shook his head from side to side. "Real shame."

Once they were inside the room, Matt instantly turned on Mello.

"Are you fucking crazy, Mello?!"

"Why?! Because I got us a place to stay and some influence?!"

"Well… you did, but… the mafia?!"

"What about it?!"

"THE MAFIA?! MELLO, THINK ABOUT IT! These guys are criminals! We're not! We've never done anything worse than sneaking out of Whammy's to go get icecream!"

Mello kissed Matt's lips to silence him.

"Matt. We're illegal immigrants. We stowed away on a plane. We're going to try and catch the world's worst criminal of all. We might die. There's not much more we can do."

Matt thought about this.

"I guess you're right, but… it just seems so risky."

Mello put his arms around Matt's neck.

"Matt, do you trust me?"

Matt put his arms around Mello's waist.

"Always."

"Good."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"All right, people, let's move out!" Rod called. Their branch of the mafia was raiding a local gang's hideout in 20 minutes.

To say Matt was nervous would be the understatement of the century. He was almost insane with worry. He didn't particularly want to commit a crime…

Mello, on the other hand, seemed the exact opposite. He was completely calm. He reasoned that if they were going to prove their loyalty, now would be the time to do it.

"Let's go!" Rod repeated, and the men all followed him down the street.

They arrived outside a warehouse a few minutes later. Rod paused to turn to the group.

"Listen up. This shouldn't be that hard if we all fight our hardest. Let's do this cleanly, quickly, and efficiently. Come on, boys! Tonight, we win!"

The men rushed into the building and the fight began. Matt tried to stay out of the way as much as possible, while Mello landed more than a few good punches and kicks. Matt was never much of a fighter.

The rival gang's members slowly dwindled. It was clear which group would win. When it appeared that there were no living members left, Rod yelled, "Okay! We don't know who's missing from this group and some others could come back at any time! I don't want them catching us by surprise!"

As Rod continued, Matt felt a sense of relief wash over his body. They'd made it. Not one person on their side had died. He almost giggled, he was so excited.

Unfortunately, not everyone on that floor was dead. Suddenly, a man with greasy blonde hair jumped up, grabbed Matt, and held a gun to his head.

"MOVE AND THE KID DIES!" he screamed.

Nobody moved.

"Matt!" Mello yelled.

"Mello…" Matt whispered, terrified.

The man walked backwards toward the door, pulling Matt with him.

"Shoot him!" Mello told Rod.

"I can't- I might hit your friend."

Mello and Matt exchanged scared glances.

"Sorry," Matt mouthed.

There it was again- that heartbroken look in Mello's eyes. And this time, Matt had caused it. The man got outside and down the street before he finally let go of Matt. Matt tried to run.

"Oh, no you don't." He hit him in the back of the head and Matt felt himself slowly falling.

It was then that he realized he never told Mello he loved him.

Everything went black.

* * *

**And he said take my hand,**

**Live while you can**

**Don't you see your dreams lie right in the palm of your hand**

**In the palm of your hand.**

**Please come with me,**

**See what I see.**

**Touch the stars for time will not flee.**

**Time will not flee.**

**Can you see?**

* * *

I'm sorry! I know that was really depressing! Can you tell I know nothing about gangs? Or airports? Well, at least I know the rest of the plot now. I was listening to a combination of 'Sonata' by Bombay Orchestra Dub and 'Frozen Flower' and 'Ice and Snow' from DN Angel while typing most of this. I also had one of those chocolate popcicles (a fudgecicle, if you will) and it gave me an idea for a future scene. Yeah, that's a teaser. Interpret it how you will –wink-. By the way, broke up with Rano. Basically, realized I like girls. Say what you will, but I have a girlfriend now. She's actually his sister. (He's a year older than me, she's a year younger.) Again, say what you will, because it's not like I haven't heard it already AND totally ignored it. :) Ny-chan likes Girl-chan better than Rano. Rano's being an ass. Aaaaanywho, sorry about the delay on this chapter- it was reeeeeeally long. Let's see… 4,000-something words. That's a hell of a lot, man! Review, pretty please! I'm going away for three weeks a week from now but I promise that I'll type chapter 4 when I get back! Expect it in a little over a month! 2 chapters left! :) Ny-chan bites your hand softly but licks it better before cuddling up to you. It's 9:38 Eastern Time, July 5th, 2008. See ya, dudes.


	4. Reunion

Yo! I'm back from Camp Calumet, which, by the way, is the coolest place ever. This was my 9th year. I was an L and S, not a camper, though. L and S is like a CIT. It's really 'L-plus sign-S', but plus signs don't show up on 's stupid editing thing. Anywho, thanks for waiting so long for this chapter! –pokes Matt-

-whispered conversation-

_('Do I have to?!'_

'_Yes. It's for the fans.'_

'_But… but…'_

'_Come on, Matt…'_

'_Kyoko, this is humiliating.'_

'_I find it kind of sexy, actually.'_

'_Mello?! Where'd you come from?'_

'_I called him to watch.'_

'…_I hate you.'_

'_ON WITH THE SHOW!')_

-Matt hesitates; deep breath-

"THE LAST TIME I FREAKED OUT, I JUST KEPT LOOKING DOWN, I STU-STU-STUTTERED WHEN YOU ASKED ME WHAT I'M THINKING 'BOUT. FEEL LIKE I COULDN'T BREATHE, YOU ASKED WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME, MY BEST FRIEND MELLO SAID, 'OH, HE'S JUST BEING MATTY.' THE NEXT TIME WE HANG OUT, I WILL REDEEM MYSELF, MY HEART CAN'T REST 'TIL THEN, OOH, WOAH, WOAH, I, I CAN'T WAIT- to see you again…"

-winks at Mello; fangirls and Applesauce pass out-

Kyoko would like to take this moment to say, "Yo, Apple-kun!" My friend Applesauce recently read my humble little fanfic and liked it. :) (for the record, Kyoko Sakuma HATES. HATES. HATES. Miley Cyrus, but that song was stuck in her head in the shower and she was like, 'Heh. I wanna torture Matt.') Right! Fanficness! Well, I think this is a long enough chapter intro… By the way, one of the OCs in this chapter is named after my friend. He doesn't like anime though, so he'll never know. He's currently at my house, actually, sleeping down the hall from me as I type this. XD I don't own Death Note, Matt, Mello, that friend, Vannessa Carlton, Miley Cyrus, Calumet, Karl (only Calumet peoples will know who that is), a 'Beautiful bearded man' (same), Tobymac (THOUGH I SO WISH I DID -listening to 'Burn'-), or Noah. On with the show…

* * *

Matt slowly flickered back to consciousness. His first thought was to roll over and poke Mello to wake him up as well, but he realized quickly that he was not in Whammy's House, sleeping next to his boyfriend in a warm bed, but in a dark alley in Los Angeles, a town he had, until about a week before, never heard of. He also realized he wasn't alone.

"Heh. Finally awake, kid?"

Matt snapped up and instantly saw stars. When his head stopped pounding, he looked up to see the man with the greasy hair.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Joshua, as if it matters." He groaned and leaned against a dumpster. "Man… your gang killed almost all of mine… what a bitch."

Matt knew better than to say anything.

"Y'know, people say gangs get all kinds of respect and shit, but it's just that- total bullshit. Gangs ain't glamorous, kid. The boss kept almost all of the money, and there were never any girls around… seems like any time a guy'd need one, they'd all disappear. There was one girl, this Monica chick. SHE was fine. Curves in all the right places."

Matt stared at the ground, trying to remain as silent as possible.

"'Guess I won't see _her_ again. Although… you'll do nicely."

"Excuse me?!" Matt squeaked, but Joshua was already on him. He pushed him down to the ground and reached for his belt buckle. Matt twisted underneath him, trying to get away, but it was no use.

"Try to enjoy this as much as I will," Joshua said, laughing. As he tugged at Matt's jeans, however, a gunshot rang out and Joshua lurched forward and screamed. Matt quickly pushed him off and jumped to the side. Joshua writhed on the ground before falling limp, blood trailing out of the corner of his mouth. Matt began running down the alley, but a man grabbed his arm. He screamed, and the man covered his mouth.

"Kid, shut up! I just saved your ass, literally, and you're running away?!"

"Who… who are you?" Matt asked, shaking.

"The name's Peter. You?"

"Matt," he answered, though he knew it wasn't the wisest thing to do.

"Matt. Hmm. Let me ask you this. Even if I let you go, where would you go?"

"Back to my boyfriend," he answered honestly.

"Oh... _Ooooh_. You're one of _them_." He sighed before continuing, "My brother was, too. He got shot for it one night while walking home with his boyfriend. Don't worry, Matt, it's cool. Anyway, do you have any idea where he is?"

"Not really…" Matt admitted. He didn't have a CLUE how to find his way back to Mello.

"Come back with me to my gang. You can try and figure it out from there."

Matt stared at Joshua's body and the growing puddle of blood. "Shouldn't you get rid of… that?"

"What? Oh. Him. Erm, no, the police can deal with that scum." He spat, stuck his hands in his pockets, and walked away.

Left without a choice, Matt followed.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Once back at Peter's hideout, he soon saw that their gang was much less… rough… than his. They seemed to be a bit more professional, if you could call it that. They had computers and everything. In fact…

"Boss, PC 3 is busted again!" a man called across the room from one of the five computers.

"Aaagh… we just fixed it, too. Okay, let me take a look." Matt followed Peter over to the man.

As Peter poked around in the back of the CPU, Matt began to realize that he had no idea what he was doing. He couldn't tell what the problem was without further inspection, but… well, he WAS a bit of genius…

"Maybe… I could fix it…?" he suggested quietly. After all, he owed Peter for saving him.

"Nah, kid—this isn't one of your little Nintendo 67 things," the unidentified man said, ruffling Matt's hair.

Matt shrank away from the contact. "It's _64_. Let me take a look. I'm good with wiring and computers and stuff."

"Let the kid try," Peter said.

The man sighed. "Fine."

He moved to the side to give Matt more room. Pulling his goggles over his eyes (they'd been pushed down in the struggle with Joshua), he began to work. After less than 3 minutes, he stepped away and said, "Try it now."

The man pressed the 'on' button and the CPU whirred to life.

"Holy shit…" he breathed.

"Kid… how'd you do that?" Peter asked, half laughing.

"Skills."

Peter carefully thought out his next words before he spoke. "Are you good with hacking?"

Matt had no desire to be caught up in further gang workings, so he lied. "Not really."

Peter seemed to stare right through his goggles, past his eyes, and into his mind, where the truth was. Matt never was very good at lying… He turned and walked into a back room. Matt could hear hushed voices from behind the closed door. When Peter reemerged, he had a slightly fake smile on his face. This worried Matt, and he was right to be worried.

"Come here for a minute." Against his better judgment, Matt followed Peter down a hall. They stopped at the 4th door on the left and Peter opened it to reveal a small, dark room with a bed and table, but not much else.

"What…" Matt started to ask, but before he could finish his sentence, Peter gave him a light shove past the doorway and quickly closed it behind him. Matt heard the click of a lock.

"Sorry, Matt—we could use a good hacker."

Matt's screams went ignored as Peter's footsteps echoed down the hall, growing softer with each second, until Matt couldn't hear them anymore at all.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Five years had passed since that night. Matt had eventually fallen asleep, exhausted from all the screaming and the events of the night. The next morning, Peter came into his room and apologized for the crude arrangements, but refused to let him leave. "Once a member, always a member," he reasoned. Even though he said this, Peter was really the only one who cared about Matt's presence. The rest just saw him as a convenient hacker. Peter treated Matt like a son for the years that they were together. However, now, Matt was 18 and Peter… Peter… well, he'd gotten in a bad scrape with a drunkard in an alley 2 months before. He died of blood loss shortly after. Matt woke up early one day and simply walked out. No one could stop him. He'd lost too much to care anymore.

Matt walked down the crumbling sidewalk, searching for an apartment. He'd never seen Mello, as he hoped. He'd pretty much abandoned all hope of seeing his boyfriend ever again. Mello could be in a different COUNTRY by then. No… now Matt was looking for a place to stay. He needed a base, at least, before he could even think about finding him.

In his pocket, his cellphone beeped to alert him that a text message was coming through.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

An almost-20-year-old Mello sat on a red sofa, staring at his former Mafia partner.

"How the hell did you get this place?" he asked.

"Contacts," the dark-haired man replied. "Any chance I can get you to come back? We could be great together, you know."

Mello smiled. "No… I'd rather do my own thing, now that almost everyone's dead."

The man sighed. "Suit yourself… you always were a crazy little bastard."

Mello laughed. His skin stretched across his fairly new wounds, and he winced.

"Take it easy, Mel. Hey, by the way, what happened to that other kid you came with… Mark…?"

"Matt," Mello corrected. He hadn't stopped thinking about him since that night 5 years before. He cried every night for months. However, when Matt never came back, he assumed… well… they _had_ heard gunshots in the area about an hour after that man dragged him away… He didn't want to think about it. He was heartbroken. "I don't know."

"Matt, whatever." He started towards the door. "Hey, um… is there anything else I can help you with before I go?"

An idea suddenly popped into Mello's head.

"You've got spies in almost all the gangs around here, right?"

"Pretty much," the man boasted. "What about it?"

"Well…"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Matt stared at the screen. It simply stated an address.

_Maybe it's a wrong number,_ he thought to himself. Although, there was no harm in trying. After stopping in a convenience store, struggling with a man who spoke no English, being yelled at in angry Spanish, and finally asking someone at a nearby gas station, he got directions to the address in the message and set off.

It was only about a 20 minute walk. He ended up outside an apartment complex.

"This is it…" he said to himself. He waited on the stoop for 15 minutes before he decided that it must have been a prank and stood up. He walked 10 feet down the sidewalk, frustrated with himself that he'd been tricked so easily, when a voice called to him from the building.

"Matt!" The voice came from a window on the third floor. He couldn't see who it was, but the voice yelled, "Try the door. Come up to apartment 3-b."

_Mysterious text messages, voices from nowhere… dear God, I'm going crazy._

Crazy or not, he opened the door and ascended the stairs. Standing outside the door of 3-b, he wondered what could be behind it. Gang members? Rapists? Pizza-faced preteens who got a kick out of prank calls? A magic purple dinosaur to grant all his wishes and sing while doing it? Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to go in…

Before he could turn around, the door swung open and revealed the one person he never expected to see behind it.

"…Mello…?" he breathed. Dear GOD. The only thing that told Matt the identity of this man was his characteristic feminine hair. Other than that… well, to be perfectly honest, Matt thought he looked a bit like a male prostitute, and he wasn't sure whether to be worried or turned on.

"Hiya, Matt." His boyfriend grinned and Matt noticed the massive scars covering the left side of his face.

"Hello, handsome," he said, his grin growing to match Mello's.

What occurred next was a rush of embracing and kissing; of tears and laughs.

"Mello… I missed you so much…" Matt purred. He kissed his boyfriend once more.

"I missed you, too. What happened? No, wait, come inside first."

Mello stepped to the side and, taking Matt's hand, pulled him into the apartment. They sat on the couch and each recounted their past few years.

"Wow," Matt said after Mello told him of his recent attempt at stealing the Death Note, "That's what I call an epic fail."

"I didn't FAIL, I strategically bailed," Mello insisted. (NOTE: Woohoo, Death Note 13!) "I could have done without this thing, though," he said, pointing to his face.

Matt brushed the strands of blonde hair covering his left cheek to the side. "I think it makes you look even sexier. Really bad-ass."

"Whatever," Mello scoffed, but Matt could tell he liked it.

"Anyway, Mello," Matt began, attempting to gather his courage, "There's something I've been waiting five years to tell you."

"There's something I want to tell you, too."

"Well… you go first."

Mello sighed. He pulled Matt into his lap and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. He pressed their lips together in a light kiss. When they broke apart, he looked straight into Matt's eyes, smiling warmly.

"Matt, I love you."

* * *

_Just a dream, just an ordinary dream._

_As I wake in bed_

_And the boy, that ordinary boy_

_Or was it all in my head?_

_Did he ask if I would come along_

_It all seemed so real._

_But as I looked to the door,_

_I saw that boy standing there with a deal._

* * *

Hell yeah, cliffhanger! :D Aw… only one more chapter… so, you like? You no like? I worked mad hard on this, and it's not even that long… sob… T.T I think it came out okay, but not as good as the last one. Although, it's a tough little sequence to do. JUST A REMINDER, THE RATING ON THIS FIC IS OT, OR T-PLUS, OR 16-PLUS, whatever you want to call it. It's going to get a little more graphic next chapter, but not quite M-rating worthy. It'll be up there, though. Yay teasers! In the outside world, lots is happening. Haru (my girlfriend) and I are doing very well. I told her I love her recently. She said she loved me, too. I'm on floating little ol' Cloud 8 here… no, not Cloud 9 because I don't like Cloud 9. Cloud 8's where it's at. Also, there's this AMAZING doujinshi game called 'Poisoned' about Whammy's House that every single Mello/Near or Mello/Matt fan needs to go download right now. It's on and it's made by a girl named Akane. You can download it for free. It's SO COOL. It's hard to get any ending but Punishment without walkthroughs, but you can find them pretty easily on this website… pub46, or something… Whatever, just google 'poisoned death note walkthrough' and it'll come up. Haha… spell check just told me 'doujinshi' should be spelled 'mothership'. Nice. XD The doujinshi calls me like the mothership! Uwaaah! RIGHT. SO. It's currently 12:22 AM Eastern Time on August 25, 2008. 'Ta for now! Ny-chan says yo! :-)

(NOTE: Sorry this took me so long to post! My internet's been down since like… August 20th. I'm only just uploading this via flashdrive on October 21st! I promise the 5th chapter will be out soon to make up for it. Again, gomen nasai!)


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